24 minutes ago, abramovich said:

We have the same defensive lineup (bar Rudiger) that won the league only two years ago. Now suddenly they're crap? I'd say United's last night's backline was no better than ours, I wouldn't want any of Young, Lindelof, Smalling or Shaw at Chelsea. The difference was not the personnel, it was down to either manager to prepare them properly and motivate them. Solskjaer clearly knows what he's doing, Sarri unfortunately doesn't.

Shaw is better than Alonso + Emerson. 

But otherwise yes. 

6 minutes ago, EdinburghBlue said:

It didn’t though, there was a host of things he could I’ve fone with 10 minutes left. Giroud on with Higuain and go two up top. CHO on and go 4-2-3-1. I agree we don’t have a massive pool of talent (particularly at the full backs at the moment) but was has Zappacosta shown us since he’s been here that he’s suddenly going to help drag us back from 2 down with 10 to go?

Jorginho is never coming off even how badly he is playing and that's always an issue. The only way you are getting at a team who is sitting back is playing wide. Like you say you could play 4231, what did Kovacic do? We have been trying to answer that question all year. You could ask Willian to play one wing, CHO the other and say stay wide and cross the ball. Like you say bring Giroud on and go 2 up front, play 3 at the back, the bench isn't the best but there are options. How does every other team get on in the PL with less quality. All we get to see is the same formation and same subs. Treat yourself Sarri it was a cup game.

3 hours ago, DannyVblue said:

I still have faith in Sarri. 

Like most fans, I couldn't believe Sarri's stubbornness last night when it came to his substitutions. I understand that he wants his players to get used to the new system, but there's nothing wrong with mixing things up and replacing some defenders with forwards to try and nick a goal in the last 20 minutes.

His stubbornness and our fan's complete lack of patience will most likely be Sarri's downfall, but if you look at the table you'll see that we're 1 point off 4th and level on points with Arsenal. We also have a cup final to look forward to on Sunday. We're having a better season than a Arsenal, but there is no talk at all of Emery getting the sack. 

We took Sarri on knowing that we needed to make some big changes. We have a very stale squad and we wanted to completely change our style of play. Whoever came into the club last summer was always going to experience difficulties. You only have to look at how Emery is doing now and how Klopp did in his 1st season at Liverpool. It's not an easy fix.

I'm of the opinion that we need to get behind Sarri and the team and evaluate things at the end of the season. The man deserves more than 7 months - it's not as if we're fighting relegation. 

Lets not forget that he's lost his last 2 games to City and United, the 2 most expensively assembled squads in the country.

As always you make some great points. l honestly think Sarri would get a bit more slack from some fans if he at least gave younger players like Ampadu and CHO a chance over some of regular under-performers. At least then people might be able to see some element of long term in the planning. As it stands I cannot fathom why certain players continue to get picked when they are playing so poorly. If Sarri does get the boot (which looks increasingly likely) it will largely be down to stubborness over team selection and tactics. 

I think the fact that he has survived some terrible results and performanced recently shows some increased patience from the board. But it may also indicate that they don't want to admit culpability if this project fails. After all if the responsibility if the team and results falls on the manager, then the responsibility of the manager selection falls on the board. If Sarri gets ushered out with a big payoff some members of the board must follow.

1 hour ago, JM7 said:

Tweeted by Simon Phillips:

”The Guardian believe that Maurizio Sarri will be sacked if Chelsea don’t win the Cup Final on Sunday. 

But the final decision will be made by Roman Abramovich.”

 

Seems harsh to sack him after a cup final defeat. 

Especially against a team that has just smashed them 6-0.

13 minutes ago, forbzy said:

As always you make some great points. l honestly think Sarri would get a bit more slack from some fans if he at least gave younger players like Ampadu and CHO a chance over some of regular under-performers. At least then people might be able to see some element of long term in the planning. As it stands I cannot fathom why certain players continue to get picked when they are playing so poorly. If Sarri does get the boot (which looks increasingly likely) it will largely be down to stubborness over team selection and tactics. 

I think the fact that he has survived some terrible results and performanced recently shows some increased patience from the board. But it may also indicate that they don't want to admit culpability if this project fails. After all if the responsibility if the team and results falls on the manager, then the responsibility of the manager selection falls on the board. If Sarri gets ushered out with a big payoff some members of the board must follow.

I do find it odd that the club would bring in Jorginho and Higuain (Sarri players) especially, and even Kepa to a lesser extent, if they planned to sack him a few months down the line. There was talk in the summer after Sarri was signed that the club were looking to go in a different direction. On the other hand, if this is the case then the club need to start putting more faith in the academy. The academy has been neglected for years. Rather than promoting from within, the club have constantly decided to look elsewhere to sign back up players. 

Sarri might not be the right man for the job. Lord knows he has not helped himself at all these past few weeks. But the club need to pick a direction and stick with it. They'll never develop an identity if they just continue to sack manager after manager after 1-2 years. I know a lot will say that it worked the past 15 years mostly. Well, yeah it did work. It helps when you have the leadership in the squad that we had.

Regardless if you are Sarri in or Sarri out, they hired him to be manager and they need to stick with him and give him ample time to instill his style. But he's also got to help himself. You can't put Zappacosta on in the 80th minute down 2-0... I mean come on Sarri! Come on!

Edited February 19, 20197 yr by chiefBlueCFC

9 minutes ago, chiefBlueCFC said:

Sarri might not be the right man for the job. Lord knows he has not helped himself at all these past few weeks. But the club need to pick a direction and stick with it. They'll never develop an identity if they just continue to sack manager after manager after 1-2 years. I know a lot will say that it worked the past 15 years mostly. Well, yeah it did work. It helps when you have the leadership in the squad that we had.

Regardless if you are Sarri in or Sarri out, they hired him to be manager and they need to stick with him and give him ample time to instill his style. But he's also got to help himself. You can't put Zappacosta on in the 80th minute down 2-0... I mean come on Sarri! Come on!

Exactly. The club seems to want a change in direction but is unclear whether they are prepared to withstand a period of poor results and lack of success in order to achieve that goal. It must be tempting to hit the reset button when that has worked in the past but it sets us back further in the long term. That being said Sarri's refusal to change things even a bit does not inspire confidence that he can eventually deliver a positive outcome. 

I'm firmly in the Hokey Cokey camp.

I don't know where we go from here. I have recently posted that Sarri should be given time to build a squad that suits his style. Allowing him to sell Hazard, Willian, Alonso etc and use the proceeds. He could probably get £250m from a good clear out.

I'm starting to change my mind. At no time last night did I think we were going to come back. We don't change. Once a transfer window has shut you have the squad with which you have to play. A good manager will make the best of the resources available. I don't think Sarri knows how best to get the most out of these players. I also think he has some of the best youth talent in Europe to choose from. He should be playing CHO at the very least. He has options but doesn't use them. I'm now not sure if it's a good idea to let him break up the current team for the sake of raising £250m for a new squad. Would that be wise when you consider that he fails to make full use of the options he has now. Zappacosta? Did he pick him because he speaks the same language and felt he could give him precise instructions? I can't see any sense in the change at all. It was too late anyway. Was he scared it could be 0-3?

It seems to me that Sarri doesn't think on his feet and lacks imagination. He stumbled upon a "winning" formula in Italy and has stuck with that. I'm no expert on Italian football but the general intelligence on that league is that they play defensively. His style of quick attacking movements caught the eye and had a certain level of success. Well guess what. We don't play that way over here anymore. Pep, Klopp and many others, now that Jose Mourhino has gone, are of the view that attacking football is the way to go and if you want to go toe to toe with the big boys you need to have a solid defensive plan. I don't see the defensive plan. Bournmouth, City and Utd have caught us out in different ways but generally the goals are being conceded through quick counter attacks. We have a soft defense when teams come at us quickly. They come quickly because they come through our midfield quickly. Get Ampadu in there somewhere. He is an outstanding young defender who should be given his chance. He has good feet, plenty of confidence and is mature beyond his years. He's not the finished article but he can play a good pass quickly out of defense. He could even play just in front the defense. From the outside it looks obvious but for me Sarri's decision making is getting worse because he is feeling the pressure. If this continues, and there is no reason to think otherwise, his decision making will only get worse. He will become less inclined to make tactical changes. We have really good players in Hazard, Kante, Rudiger, Azpilqueta and Higuaín. Sarri needs to change his tactics and get Kante back in front of the defense. We can't keep conceding these goals. Jorge isn't working. It just isn't. It looks like he is used to getting a bit more time on the ball but now it all looks a bit rushed. He makes the easy pass because he is being closed down a bit more than he would like. Yes he lays it off to someone most of the time but to little effect. I thought he was meant to take it from defense to midfield or attack. Its all a bit too predictable. The opposition are onto him quicker now and we don't create enough.

I could go on but it's too painful to navigate the full depth of my despair.

One more really bad performance and result without any meaningful changes and I'll be changing from Hokey Cokey to OUT.

 

 

5 hours ago, Zeta said:

Problem is, I just don't see who there is out there realistically who could take over. We've been through most managers already.

There’s always Barry Fry. 

47 minutes ago, DannyVblue said:

We were playing with 5 defenders 2 years ago. I don't think the comparison to United is fair. Their defense looked strong last night because they were playing with 9/10 men behind the ball and counter-attacking. If we want to play possession based attacking football with most of our players in our opponents half, we need a different type of defender than what we've currently got. 

It's up to the manager how he sets up his backline. If Sarri wants to play four at the back he needs to organize his midfield in such a way that it protects the back four better. It's all about the preparation and proper setup, not the numbers.

As for United last night, they played with 9/10 men behind the ball in the second half, they were protecting their lead. We were just as toothless against their back four in the first half.

2 hours ago, enigma said:

I think we're clutching at straws here. What has Giroud shown previously that would be better than to continue with Higuain in the game? The options on our bench are limited. 

Giroud links up well with other players.  He has helped Hazard get a few, and with another threat in Higuain he might have been able to help unlock the defense by not only being another threat, but helping two bigger threats link up with the pay. Also, be nice to have two big forwards in the box since the final sub was a RB to put in crosses...  There was also CHO..... Of course the options are limited, but he had better choices available than the one he made.

 

I was Sarri In but currently I'm in the middle. I can see the pros and cons from both sides and I think either route the board decides to go there needs to be major restructuring from the board top-down. If Sarri stays then he needs major backing from the board and about half of the starting eleven needs to be cleared to get players that suit his system. On the other hand, if the board decides to fire Sarri they need to have a meeting to decide what they want for the club moving forward. Do they want attacking football? Do they simply want to win trophies? Are they satisfied with just getting to champions league each season? Do they want to make use of academy players? These are questions that will need to be answered if they fire Sarri and whatever manager and/or technical director they hire will have to be based on the answers to these questions.

I want to give him time, I want him to succeed, I want him to help us change. Everyone knows I back him, that backing was 100%, that's now down to 50% simply because he refuses to try something different, it's so frustrating when you see that it's not working. Every team and their dog can setup against us and nullify our attacks easily. I usually look to the players and last night I couldn't because they tried but the instructions were just not working. And in a weird place where I want to see free flowing attacking football and manager succeed but with his stubbornness this will not happen.

You even if I see him change something minor a tweak here or there just do something

16 hours ago, Tea Bar Boy said:

Think he has been given a fair chance , the fact his brand of football is boring , nor bringing results lacking any passion or desire and we the fans have lost all faith in him is not a knee jerk one result reaction ...

You are talking to fan base that has seen a lot of good and bad football and are very knowledgeable in regards to players and tactics ...to ignore them is a massive mistake 

 

This is madness. Us fans know feck all. Im a manager for a decent size firm here in the States and I would say I still know feck all about how to run a proper club or football decisions. 

I've been one to give Sarri patience....we knew this would take time and not be smooth........but now I wonder if you have to payout a manager if you can fire them for cause, because I fail to see how Sarri couldn't be fired for cause.

He is alienating the team, and refusing to change anything to fix it.

He is alienating the youth, and refusing to change anything to fix it.

He is alienating the fans, and refusing to change anything to fix it.

The only thing he is being loyal to is his vision, and he does so at the expense of the club..... and I don't mean loyal to his big picture plan, or loyal to a strategy... I mean he is loyal to every minute detail he seemed to make his mind up on at the start of the season regardless of how ineffective those details are in the roll out of his strategy/plan.  The lowest odds in Football betting right now has to be the substitutes Sarri makes....and not just who for who, but even the very minute it will be done.....the only thing more predictable in Football than this is that during a game the ball will be kicked.

It is almost admirable, but it is quickly (if not already) becoming a case of proving that he is the boss and he can make even the daftest decisions, every game, if he wants and all the club can do in response is sack him.  It is almost as if he no longer cares about getting his system to work in some form, but is instead only set on showing that he can keep doing what he chooses regardless of how it pans out each time.

 

If this was a case of "it's improving it just needs more time" then ok, but it's not looking that way.  If this was a case of "we're settling in these players and next season with an addition or two we'll have a squad ready to compete" then ok, but no one is being developed with real game experience under the age of 25(edit: aside from Kepa).

I don't want to sack another manager so quickly again, but I also don't want to sacrifice the club on the alter of "Sarriball" either and it appears that's exactly what Sarri is willing to do.

..................and it is a tough decision because the squad clearly needs refreshing and once that is done maybe Sarri's system works better.....who knows?.....but right now we have a squad that needs a massive (it's really been due for some time) overhaul and a manager who can't seem to work with that squad.  The easy answer would be to change both, but that's probably not realistic given current circumstances.

 

 

Edited February 19, 20197 yr by Barry Bridges

SS breaking news, something might break, senior bods are in discussion about Sarris future

Chelsea have touched base with Laurent Blanc to discuss the possibility of the Frenchman replacing Maurizio Sarri. #CFC (TMW)

God, not Blanc.

13 minutes ago, Zeta said:

God, not Blanc.

Lol, that's as good as we'd get. 

Lampard and Zidane considered for new manager:

https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11668/11642235/zinedine-zidane-frank-lampard-considered-to-replace-maurizio-sarri-at-chelsea

Would Lampard & Jody Morris be a bad idea though? 

They would have the respect of the players, owners & fans, play attacking football & integrate our youth. It has & is currently working with Madrid, and seems to be working with Man Utd.

Personally I feel the era of your Superstar Manager (ala a Mourinho) is coming to an end. 

1 hour ago, Semper Fi said:

This is madness. Us fans know feck all. Im a manager for a decent size firm here in the States and I would say I still know feck all about how to run a proper club or football decisions. 

That is why they will be hiring a football manager and not any of us fans  :). 

1 hour ago, Semper Fi said:

This is madness. Us fans know feck all. Im a manager for a decent size firm here in the States and I would say I still know feck all about how to run a proper club or football decisions. 

Then please don't apply for the job when it becomes vacant .. 

The guy is stubborn and ignorant.  He repeatedly tells us he wants to play "my football"

That alone is enough to tell you he will never change. So all of us looking for tactical tweaks, formation changes etc are, most likely, pissing in the wind.  We can all want to back him, but it's almost blind faith doing that because you know full well its not going to work.  He won't get 'his' players because our board won't back him to that extent.  And using Pep as a comparison to argue for him to get another season, is bloody moronic

If Sky Sports are right about discussions going on, Im not surprised.  The only surprise would be if we lose to City and Spuds and he is still here

Our style of play has been sussed out and everyone is on to it.  Teams have now found us out and the ones with decent quality are having no problems with us.  Sarri has no plan B, or ability to counter act that, and as such we are going nowhere fast.  We will become one of the most predictable, and easiest teams to play against believe it or not. 

Not many managers survive that kind of toxic atmosphere from last night.  Our own fans sung "f**k sarriball",  "you're getting sacked in the morning", and "you dont know what you're doing" . With Bruce Buck there, you can bet that got relayed back to the other men in suits upstairs.   If any of us were on our board we'd be thinking today "christ, this guy is not welcome here.  We need to let him go".